I just took a much-needed break from blogging daily for over two years (minus a couple of days). Saturday night I came home exhausted after going out with the SharePoint Saturday folks, and just didn’t do my daily blog post. I had been thinking about cutting back to a few times a week anyway, and it gave me a good excuse, especially since this week was jam-packed full of schoolwork, a live radio show, etc. And things aren’t going to slow down anytime soon.

Saturday was especially stressful, as my 14.5 year old pug Bubbahad to have emergency surgery to remove his right eye, which had become dramatically swollen over a couple of days from a nasty infection. He also had a dental infection and had to have a bunch of teeth out. We had to make some quick decisions on Saturday, but as it seemed like he had a good chance of a full recovery (other than losing the eye), we went ahead with it. He was mostly blind anyway, as well as deaf (or near to it). But he must have been able to see some light/shadow with the eye, because he’s even more lost than before and really has to find his way around by trial and error. Thankfully, he still has a pretty good sense of smell, so he’s using that to his advantage in locating food—he’s has a great appetite so far! Later this week, I’ll post a pic of our one-eyed pirate pug.

I just got back from the SharePoint Saturday speaker’s dinner. I’m not actually speaking this year, but I got to because I’m one of the organizers. It was good to meet a handful of new people. Dinner was a nice salad, a completely uninspired and practically unseasoned vegetable pasta dish, and sweet potato fries with an ungodly amount of salt on them—but I knew Greg’s Grill would be like that. They just don’t go out of their way to cater to vegans—their thing is steaks. And we get to go back there tomorrow for SharePint. Rats. I really pulled hard for Broken Top Bottle Shop, which was much better in a variety of ways—location, food, beer, atmosphere, staff—but my co-organizers just wouldn’t go for it.

This was the first time in a long time that I have eaten dinner with non vegans. I had to consciously look away from their slabs of used-to-be cow and try to not to think A. How gross, and B. How sad it is that they’re blithely eating the body of a smart, conscious creature who was tortured and then killed, merely for a taste preference—and one that is grossly unhealthy for you at that. These are otherwise smart people, and I used to be one of them, so I try not to be too hard on them. I did wear my “Wings are for flying, not frying” shirt as a sort of passive protest. But I doubt anyone even noticed, or cared. The whole thing is frustrating and now I’m bummed out.

At least tomorrow there will be vegan options all day long, because I was in charge of catering. Ha! If I were really brave, I would have ordered all vegan food.

Makes me think of this Op-ed I read recently that highlights how lonely veganism can be sometimes.

Try to imagine what it feels like to be a part of a very small minority that shares common values. When I tell people I’m vegan they look at me as though I’d just landed from Mars, roll their eyes as though I had done something wrong and look at me as if I’m judging them – as if the ideological choice is about them and not the animals. Being vegan means that sometimes you feel lonely even among close friends and family. There is a huge ideological gap between you and almost the entire world around you. The worst is when an argument about morals begins.

As a lawyer and lecturer I’m used to arguments, but this is not just an argument, it is a repressed war. And when it rears its head, even for a moment, it is very painful and reminds me of how separated I am, ideologically, from most everyone else. I sit next to those closest to me while they are eating meat and I do what I used to do back when I also ate meat: Repress my emotions. Imagine that you are the only one at the table who believes in this very important value, and that value is being eaten at that same table. All I can do is look at my loved ones and remember that they too have morals. A person can eat meat and contribute to the world in a thousands different ways: Charity, generosity, love (for animals as well), integrity, compassion. There are so many good people in the world.

And then I look at myself and think: ‘You’re no saint either.’ Vegans hurt animals in so many ways, unintentionally. And what is it that I am really doing for the animals? Close to nothing; a monthly donation to animal welfare organizations and veganism. When I walk past a chicken coop, a cowshed or a stray dog I remember how meager my contribution to animal welfare really is. Veganism merely reduces the harm I am causing to the animal world.

In this episode, we catch up with Scott Beckstead, Oregon Senior State Director of The Humane Society of the United States. He gives us his thoughts on the feral cat controversy in Central Oregon, plus tells us about some animals that were destined to be laid out on someone’s dinner plate, but instead were rescued by caring people and now have a wonderful home in Oregon. You’ll hear about the surprising proclamations made by the mayor of Portland and the mayor of Eugene. And we bring you an update on Missy, the German Shepherd who was stranded for 8 days on a mountain top.

And, of course, we highlight the latest News from the Vegan Frontier, let you know about vegan related happenings in and around Central Oregon, and more!

So I finally ordered my books and “course packs” today (student loan check just arrived last week). I managed to stretch it into an all afternoon / evening thing by getting derailed with loading software onto my Kindle Fire to read the course pack materials and also the epub format when I find things that aren’t Kindle format. {Seems like a giant rip-off for a handful of photocopied articles for each course—I opted for the digital only, because it was even more ridiculously expensive and wasteful to have them print them off and mail them to me.}

Now I need to buckle down and do some serious reading and start cranking out some assignments!

And I finally got the show notes posted for our Sep 11 show. There was so much going on in the last few weeks and I had some difficulty deciding how/what info to include in the notes this time. But here they are. And hopefully tomorrow I’ll turn right around and get this week’s show notes up as well.

In today’s show, we talk with author and activist Arthur Poletti. Arthur is a passionate follower of Gary Yourofsky, who is best known for his viral video, Best Speech You Will Ever Hear. We also discuss why the world may have to go vegan within the next 35 years. And, of course, we highlight the latest News from the Vegan Frontier, let you know about vegan related happenings in and around Central Oregon, and more!